


The Art of Subtle Matchmaking

by SpicyPepper_SweetSugar



Category: The Walking Dead (TV), The Walking Dead - All Media Types
Genre: F/M, From Aaric's POV, M/M, Rated M for a tiny scene in the end, bethyl, but nothing too naughty
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-29
Updated: 2015-03-29
Packaged: 2018-03-20 05:34:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,616
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3638670
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SpicyPepper_SweetSugar/pseuds/SpicyPepper_SweetSugar
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After finding Beth, Daryl and Aaron bring her back to Alexandria with them. It doesn't take long until Eric and Aaron invite Beth and Daryl to live with them and it most certainly doesn't take long for Eric to figure out that the hunter and the beautiful blonde would make a wonderful couple. Of course, he had to bring Aaron into it as well. [Bethyl through the eyes of Aaric!]</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Art of Subtle Matchmaking

**Author's Note:**

> Hey people! Since I won't be able to update Blink tonight, I decided to post this little one-shot I've written! I feel like we all need a little happy something to prepare for tonight and what's better than some Bethyl and Aaric living together under the same room, with Eric playing matchmaker? ;)
> 
> Either way, this little one-shot is rated M because of a little scene in the end, but trust me, it's nothing explicit since the entire story is from Eric and Aaron's point of view! Okay, that said, I don't own these lovely characters, but it's very fun to play with them sometimes.
> 
> Hope you enjoy! ;)

** T he Art of Subtle Matchmaking **

It wasn't as if they put much thought into it. It had been kind of a spur of the moment thing, but also a little bit like a natural transition.

They had all been sitting around the table in Aaron and Eric's kitchen, eating spaghetti, when Eric had blurted, “You two should move in here.”

Daryl and Beth had paused and looked at each other before turning to Aaron, who had looked over at Eric, seeming just as surprised. They had avoided going to another one of Deanna's parties and opted to stay at home and share a quiet meal, like they did at least three times a week now.

Aaron had thought about it for just a moment before nodding a little, turning to the other two who still looked a bit stunned. “You should,” he agreed. “Beth spends the majority of her day here anyway with Eric and you come around a lot to work on the new bike. We wouldn't mind if you slept here too, since there's plenty of room.”

Beth had turned to Daryl again and for a moment, their eyes had stayed connected, as if a silent conversation was passing between them. It hadn't taken long for Beth's lips to curve up into a smile and then she had looked over at Eric, “We'd love to move in with you guys.”

And just like that, it was settled. Two days later, Beth and Daryl put the few belongings they had in the room that had previously supposed to be used as a guest room and it officially became Beth and Daryl's room.

-§-

“I'm telling you, Aaron,” Eric said from where he sat on the porch, “you just have to open your eyes a little and it'll be clear as day.”

Aaron shook his head at his boyfriend, looking over at Daryl and Beth who were talking about something quietly as Daryl worked on the bike in the garden. “You're crazy,” Aaron told Eric. “They're just close friends, that's all.”

“I'm _telling_ you, those two are in love and they don't even realize it,” Eric stated, sounding as confident as ever.

Aaron looked at the pair in the garden again, not seeing what Eric had been going on and on about the entire day. Somehow, his partner had gotten it in his head that there was something going on between Beth and Daryl and ever since then, he hadn't stopped talking about how happy the two of them would be if they actually got together. Aaron didn't really think it was their place to meddle, but he also thought that Eric was just imagining things because he was bored around the house.

A couple of weeks had passed since Aaron and Daryl had stumbled upon Beth and Morgan out in the woods when they had been running from a smaller herd of walkers. The young blonde and the older man had helped them out and saved them from an almost certain death and to be quite honest, Aaron had wanted to suggest they take them back to the ASZ just for that, after seeing the way the two strangers wielded their weapons against the dead ones. When he had turned around to ask what Daryl thought about it though, he had been met by a sight that he never would have expected to see.

Apparently, Beth Greene wasn't a stranger at all, because the blonde was the girl that Daryl had once mentioned fleetingly when the two of them had been hunting together.

“ _Damn it, Aaron,_ ” Daryl had muttered in a low tone as he had helped Aaron to stand up. “ _Beth was a hell of a lot more quiet than you were when I taught her_...”

Aaron had wanted then to ask him who the 'Beth' that he had mentioned was, but by the pained expression that had flashed on Daryl's face, he realized that he probably shouldn't.

When Aaron had looked at Daryl though, that time when they had found Beth and Morgan (or the other two had found him and Daryl, depending on how one looked at it), he had been stunned when he had seen the hunter sink to his knees in front of the blonde stranger, looking up at her as if he couldn't believe what he was actually seeing. When the girl had reached out for him and touched his face with her small hand, Daryl had inhaled so sharply, as if he had been drowning for a long time and suddenly was able to breathe in again. It had been incredible to watch and Aaron had only looked away when he had realized that there were silent tears running down Daryl's cheeks as the man's lip trembled. The girl, Beth, had then knelt in front of Daryl and embraced him tightly, telling him over and over again that she was there and that they would be okay again.

To say the least, it had been a reunion unlike any that Aaron had ever seen before.

The rest of Rick's people had been  just as shocked as Daryl at the revelation that Beth was alive and it had settled the matter on whether or not they should recruit Beth and Morgan. Deanna had insisted on throwing a small get-together, but Rick had protested this time, telling her that all his family wanted was to be allowed some peace for a while, so that both Beth and Morgan could settle in without being too overwhelmed.  Daryl took a few days off too, and as far as Aaron could tell, he and Beth never seemed too far away from each other.

But still, he had never seen it as anything other than two good friends who had missed each other greatly being reunited. He had heard the story later, during the first dinner that he and Eric had invited Beth along to as well and the fact that she had survived a gunshot to the head seemed like a miracle that no one even wanted to question. He could see that Beth and Daryl had been close because he wasn't blind, but when Eric suddenly seemed convinced that the two of them actually loved each other as more than friends, Aaron didn't know what to think.

“Just _look_ at them,” Eric insisted, nudging his side, bringing him back out of his deep thoughts.

So Aaron did, and what he saw, made him pause.

Beth had thrown her head back and was laughing at something that Daryl had said to her, her hand resting on Daryl's bare forearm. There was a small dusting of pink on her cheeks and her eyes seemed to shine as she looked at the hunter with pure joy written over her face for the first time since she had come to the safe zone. Daryl's own lips seemed to tug up a bit and the tips of his ears appeared to be just a little more red than before as he peered down at his shoes, kicking the grass a little, his longish hair falling in front of his eyes.

Aaron watched, perplexed, as Beth reached up and brushed Daryl's hair away from his eyes, looking at him with a bright smile still on her lips. What truly amazed Aaron though, was how Daryl stopped trying to hide the fact that he too was smiling shyly, and how the other man seemed to almost gravitate toward Beth.

Aaron blinked a few times before turning toward Eric, who was watching the scene unfold as well. “Okay,” he finally relented. “I see it now.”

Eric only grinned, “I told you that you would. Now, how do you suggest we get them together?”

Aaron rolled his eyes but wrapped his arm around Eric's shoulder, kissing his temple lightly before looking back at Daryl and Beth who once again seemed focused on the bike that Daryl was working on.

“We'll figure something out,” he replied, wondering to himself just how he could have missed something that had clearly been so obvious from the very beginning.

-§-

They needed to figure something out and  _soon_ .

That was what Eric had told Aaron the night before when the two of them had gone to bed. Aaron didn't deny it because a week had gone by since Beth and Daryl had officially moved in with them and it seemed like there was always some kind of tension between their new housemates, despite the fact that they seemed completely oblivious to it.

“I know,” Aaron said, “their looks at dinner are killing me, I swear.”

“It's like they're reading each others minds or something,” Eric nodded as he settled into their shared bed, reaching for his book on the nightstand. “It's worse than watching Rachel and Ross on _F.R.I.E.N.D.S._ ”

Aaron couldn't help but chuckle at that, because he had thought the same thing a bit earlier that day when he had watched Daryl and Beth go to Olivia to see if she had a bow that Beth could practice with when they went hunting together.

“I miss that show,” Aaron stated and Eric nudged him in the ribs with his elbow.

“Who needs it when we have Beth and Daryl?” he said.

“It's the will-they-or-won't-they, isn't it? That's what's drawing you in, right?” Aaron asked, but Eric merely shrugged.

“I think it's just a matter of time,” he answered.

“Which is why we really shouldn't meddle,” Aaron said, leaning into Eric as he rested his head on his partner's shoulder. “Let things run their course. Let them explore whatever it is that they are feeling all on their own.”

“I thought you hated the tension as much as I do?” Eric pouted, making Aaron smile.

“Yeah, well, I still think that we should let them figure things out by themselves,” Aaron stated.

“You're going to eat those words, Aaron,” Eric warned. “You'll see that in a week or two, you'll get tired enough of the push and pull and you'll just want to lock them in a closet and tell them to play seven minutes in heaven or something.”

Aaron smirked, but didn't deny it, knowing that Eric was probably right once again. “We'll see,” he said. “But just leave them be, okay?”

“Fine,” Eric groaned, rolling his eyes, “but if it gets to be too much, I'm going to at least start nudging Beth in the right direction and I expect you to tell Daryl to man up when you go on your next recruiting mission.”

“Whatever you say.”

-§-

Aaron got out of his car and glanced over at Daryl who pulled his motorcycle to a stop. His fellow recruiter swung his leg over the side and stood up, pulling out his crossbow after making sure that the bike was going to be stable where it was. Wordlessly, the two of them began walking through the woods, hoping to catch something nice that they would be able to bring back fro community dinner later tonight.

“You're a handsome guy,” Aaron pointed out after a while, trying to sound as casual as possible.

He noticed how Daryl tensed for a moment, turning to look at him curiously. “You comin' on to me or somethin'?” he asked gruffly, but there was a teasing tone there as well that told Aaron that he wasn't being serious.

“No,” Aaron shrugged, “but I just thought about how I don't know if you were ever married or something. Besides, you don't exactly have a gay or bisexual vibe around you, and I'm happy as I am with Eric.”

Daryl snorted at that as he started walking again, “Nah, I ain't ever been married...”

“Girlfriend then?” Aaron wondered.

“None that stuck around,” Daryl replied, keeping his answers short-clipped. “Either I snuck out the next day, or they did.”

“I see,” Aaron said, clicking his tongue together. “Well, Beth stayed, right?”

Once again, Daryl stopped, this time turning around to face him fully. “What the hell does Beth have to do with any of this?” he demanded to know.

“I was merely pointing out that she's sort of become like a...constant for you since we found her,” Aaron replied calmly, but he did raise his hands to show that he hadn't meant any harm. No matter how much time had passed since Daryl and the rest of Rick's group had come back with him to Alexandria, Aaron still sometimes saw that Daryl needed his space from time to time.

“Look,” he sighed then, lowering his hands, “I know that you and your family thought that she was dead and I can see how much she had meant to and how much she _still_ means to you. You two obviously care about each other a lot.”

“So? We're just friends... Or somethin',” Daryl shrugged, turning his face away from Aaron, but not before Aaron noticed that tiny hint of a blush creeping up the hunter's cheeks.

“You sure there's not more to that 'something'?” Aaron gently asked.

Daryl blinked a couple of times, mouth set in a firm line before he opened his mouth again. “You're not makin' any sense.”

Aaron suppressed the urge to roll his eyes, not only at Daryl for clearly pretending that he didn't know what was being suggested, but also at himself for listening to Eric when he had urged him to try and talk to Daryl about Beth early this morning.

“I was just thinking that the two of you seem to be really good for each other, that's all,” Aaron shrugged, trying to brush it off. It was clear that Daryl had no intention of ever admitting that there was something else going on between him and Beth, but Aaron figured that if he ever wanted to talk about it, he would. “Although I do want to mention, that if I was straight, I would totally go for a girl like Beth.”

Daryl's only reply was another look and a grunt that didn't say much.

But the way his cheeks seemed to color red and the way he quickly changed the subject to get back to the hunt told Aaron a hell of a lot.

-§-

Eric had never been one for subtlety.

Aaron had tried telling him over and over again to just let Beth and Daryl figure out things on their own, but Eric was determined to try and push the two of them together. It was obvious really. How well Beth and Daryl worked together and how the two of them just seemed to click in ways that Eric hadn't seen with any of the other newcomers yet.

“How about you stir the sauce and I'll start the spaghetti up?” Eric suggested to Beth, who had silently been making notes on how he made his not-so-famous spaghetti bolognese.

“Sure,” Beth smiled kindly at him, as she always did when they worked together in the kitchen.

It was when they switched places that Eric just couldn't keep his mouth shut anymore.

“Our men always come back hungry, don't they?” he mused, looking at Beth as he awaited her reaction. At first she didn't say anything but he could _see_ the moment his words sunk into her brain because a blush began creeping up her cheeks.

“You know that Daryl and I are just friends, right?” Beth said, looking over at him despite the fact that her face was now bright red. From what Eric understood, that was one of the things that had changed the most about Beth since she had been shot in the head and mistaken to be dead. Maggie had once pointed out how much more direct her sister was, clearly not beating around the bush on anything anymore. It was a quality that Eric respected in the young woman and if the looks Daryl sometimes sent her when she was doing it unknowingly indicated anything, he was quite fond of the new trait as well.

“Yeah, yeah,” Eric nodded innocently, putting the spaghetti in the already boiling water. “I wasn't trying to imply anything. It just sort of came out that way.”

“Mhm...” Beth hummed, looking like she didn't believe him at all. She was pretty good at spotting a lie too but Eric didn't know whether that was something she had been able to do before as well.

“Although, I do think you should know that Daryl didn't really accept this community until you came here,” he said, turning so that he could lean against the counter while facing her.

“I know he had some difficulties settling in–”

“It was more than just ' _some difficulties_ ', Beth,” Eric interrupted before she could finish her train of thoughts. She shut her mouth and her lips pressed together in a tight line, eyes moving across his face as if she was trying to figure out just what it was that he was telling her. When she didn't speak, he took it as a sign for him to continue. “He pushed everyone away,” Eric said. “It was as if he was itching for a fight or something. Like he was just waiting for someone to do something so that he could have a reason the beat the crap outta them.”

Beth didn't say anything but for a second, Eric saw something akin to pain flash in her eyes. She clearly hated that Daryl had been like that and Eric figured that she understood that on some level, it must have had to do with the hunter's grief, mourning her.

“Aaron invited him to dinner one night and he got a bit better, I suppose,” Eric continued, “but there was still something missing there. I get that Daryl is a man of few words but at times, it seemed like he wanted to say something but just swallowed down the words.”

“He didn't know you yet,” Beth offered. “I'm sure he's more open now.”

“Yeah, he is,” Eric agreed. “But he didn't open up until he started bringing you to dinner.”

The implication of it all was there and Eric had basically bared all his cards for Beth to see. She watched him quietly for a moment, blinking a couple of times, but she didn't say anything. The look on her face remained neutral and Eric wished that he was as good as Aaron at reading people when they were trying to cover up what was really going through their minds, but unfortunately, it seemed like that ability of his had all but disappeared completely since he stopped going out on recruiting missions.

“I just thought you should know that he seems a lot happier than he did before,” Eric sighed, sensing that Beth wasn't going to say anything. “And I just think a lot of that has to do with you being here.”

Beth opened her mouth then, about to say something when they heard the front door open, Aaron's easy chatter filling the house. They both turned at the same time, seeing Aaron and Daryl walk into the kitchen, muddy boots having been taken off by the front door so that they would be able to clean them later.

Aaron walked over to Eric and leaned in to press a light kiss against his lips, “Hey.”

“Hi,” Eric smiled back at him.

“I need to shower and change out of these clothes before dinner,” Aaron told him. “Do you know where I left that sweater I wore last week?”

“It's in the back of your closet,” Eric told him. “But let me get it for you because you'll just make a mess of things in there.” Aaron grinned at him and the two of them walked off, leaving Beth and Daryl alone in the kitchen. He fetched Aaron his shirt and then walked back to where he had left the spaghetti boiling, but he stopped walking when he spotted Beth and Daryl.

The hunter had walked up to the blonde and stood just a few inches away from her, his head hung low as he whispered something in her ear that seemed to bring a small smile to Beth's lips. Eric eyes traveled downward and he noticed that Daryl's hand was hovering over Beth's waist, but he wasn't touching her at all.

“Everything's been good here,” Beth said quietly, but not as quietly as Daryl had been whispering earlier. Eric figured that he must have asked her if everything had been okay while he and Aaron had been gone. “ _And I missed you too_...”

_That_ , had come out in such a low whisper that Eric was sure he had misheard Beth first. He watched curiously as Beth moved her hand to rest it against Daryl's arm and smiled up at the man. It wasn't the first time Eric had seen the two of them be affectionate toward each other, which was partially the reason that he had pushed Aaron to help him get the two of them together. It was clear that there was something more than friendship going on between them, no matter how much they both tried to deny it.

Eric cleared his throat, making both Beth and Daryl turn toward him. It didn't escape his attention how Daryl didn't move away from Beth and Eric suspected it might have something to do with him wanting to pretend like nothing was out of the ordinary.

“The other bathroom is working again,” he told him. “You can wash up in there.”

Daryl eyed him for another moment before nodding. “Thanks,” he said, finally stepping away from Beth, but not before giving her one last glance. He headed out the door and Eric turned toward the blonde, who was biting her lip, leaning back against the counter.

Yeah, sure. There was  _nothing_ going on there at all.

- §-

Eric kept his eyes narrowed as he looked across the room.

“If looks could kill, I'm sure Spencer would be dead,” Aaron whispered in his ear as he came to stand by his side. “What are you doing over here, being a wallflower? That's usually my job between the two of us.”

“I think what Dixon has might be contagious,” Eric joked lamely, his eyes not moving away from the back of Spencer's head as he glared daggers at him. Deanna's son was standing on the other side of the room, chatting away with Beth who was smiling at him and engaging in the conversation as if she was actually interested in it.

“Uh oh,” Aaron mumbled into Eric's ear. “I see trouble.” Eric turned his eyes in the direction that Aaron nodded and he spotted Daryl standing with his back against the wall, a bottle of beer clutched tightly in his hand. Eric was sure that if the hunter tightened his grip just a little, the glass would break, but he was glad that he wasn't the only one who was staring down Spencer.

It was a known fact around town that Deanna's son Spencer was a flirt. A couple of times since the walls had gone up, there had been a few dramas involving him and some of the women in town, but since he was generally harmless, everyone let him handle his own problems.

Eric had suspected that something like this would happen tonight the second he had seen Beth in her pretty white dress with floral prints. The young woman had apparently let Jessie curl her hair too and had pinned it up, only leaving a few curls down to frame her face. She had looked so beautiful, that when Daryl had spotted her, he had actually stopped pulling on his clean boots and just stared at her with his mouth hanging open.

This was the first one of Deanna's gatherings that the four of them were attending together. Eric had convinced Beth that it would be fun to dress up and actually go out and get a change in scenery and all it had taken had been one look from Beth, and Daryl had agreed to come as well.

Eric had been sure that tonight would be the night that Beth and Daryl would  _finally_ get together, but the second that Spencer had opened the door and trailed his dirty little eyes over Beth's beautiful frame, Eric had known that shit would hit the fan instead.

The man had pretty much monopolized Beth all night long. She was still the newest face among the people in the community, and everyone wanted to get to know Maggie's sister. Eric could see the judgment in some of the faces around the room. In passing he had heard some older woman muttering about how Beth was 'living with three men' and how that was wrong or whatever. Eric didn't pay much attention to that kind of talk, but it angered him that some of the hags that had spewed their judgment on him and Aaron were now judging Beth the same way, if not worse.

Still, Spencer was the problem that remained, because not only did  _he_ not see the way Beth was clearly not interested in him at all, but  _Daryl_ didn't see it either. It seemed like the only thing the hunter was seeing was the way Spencer's hand brushed against Beth's arm as he talked to her and the way Beth smiled back at the man. He obviously didn't see that the smile on Beth's face looked more like a grimace than anything else and that her eyes  scanned t he room, as if she was looking for someone or something to save her.

“This night is bound to go to hell,” Eric muttered, taking a big gulp from his wine, eyes moving from Beth to Daryl and back again.

- §-

Eric and Aaron had been right of course, because as soon as they entered the house, they heard the loud voices coming from the living room.

“I don't understand why you're making such a big deal outta this!” Beth yelled, taking off the high heels that she had worn at the party.

“He had his hand all over ya!” Daryl shouted back. “Ya were flirtin' with him all night long!”

Aaron looked over at Eric, who in turn looked at him. None of them knew how to approach this situation. They had never heard neither Beth nor Daryl arguing or yelling at each other.

“Let's give the a moment,” Aaron whispered, nudging Eric to follow him to the kitchen. They closed the door behind themselves and sat down, but there was no way to drown out the sounds of the argument that was going on in the next room.

“' _Flirtin' with him_ '? Are you _insane_?” Beth asked loudly. “It's called being polite!”

“Ya think I'm stupid or somethin', huh?” Daryl demanded.

“I think you're bein' a _jackass_!” Beth told him. “I'd _never_ flirt with Spencer! If anythin', I was tryin' to get away from him but you were probably too busy drinkin' your damn beer to even _notice_ _me_!”

After that, the voices got a little quieter and Aaron looked at Eric only to notice him straining to hear what was going on. Aaron kicked him under the table, making him yelp. Aaron gave him his best disapproving look, shaking his head.

It seemed like the argument outside had settled some, so silently both of them agreed to go and check on their housemates. When they opened the door to the kitchen, Daryl was just walking past them with hurried steps, heading for his and Beth's room.

“Don't you _dare_ walk away from me, Daryl Dixon!” Beth called after him and a few seconds later, she passed them as well, her cheeks flushed and her hair messy, unruly curls falling out  of the pins that were supposed to be holding them together. She walked into the room after Daryl and the door slammed shut.

Aaron looked at Eric again and they both sighed to themselves, realizing that there would be no way to talk to them tonight.

-§-

The next morning, they were all pretending that the argument from the night before hadn't happened. Beth and Daryl were quietly eating their breakfast while Aaron and Eric exchanged worried glances. No one dared to try and bring it up, but the two of them noticed that Beth and Daryl weren't speaking to each other.

It continued like that for about a week.

Aaron and Eric had both tried their best to not interfere and they had backed off of trying to pushing them together. It was clear that they needed some time for themselves and to figure out their own issues.

There were some things that they took more positively though. Like the fact that neither Beth nor Daryl had asked to move out of the house or moved to sleep on the couch in the living room. It seemed like even though they were angry with each other, they still depended on each other.

If only they would get their heads out of their asses and admit it, it would make Aaron and Eric's lives much easier.

That was the reason that Eric and Aaron had decided to leave the two of them alone at the house today, hoping that they would be able to talk things through when they were alone.

“Do you think they talked it out?” Eric asked.

“We've been gone for two hours,” Aaron pointed out. “I don't think they could just ignore each other for that long without having us there to talk to instead.”

“You're right,” Eric nodded as they walked up to their front door. “If they haven't though, we'll have to talk some sense into them.”

“I couldn't agree more,” Aaron said, unlocking the door, stepping inside.

The sight that met them caused them both to pause, mouths dropping open.

It wasn't as if they could see much, but they could certainly see _enough._ Beth and Daryl were on the couch, but _Beth_ was on top of Daryl, buck naked and _moving_ in a way that was anything but innocent.

Of course, considering that both she and Daryl were naked, moaning and groaning, Aaron realized that there was absolutely _nothing_ innocent about the situation at all.

Eric let out a sound of surprise which made Beth and Daryl to falter in their movements as they looked their way. Beth let out a small shriek and dropped forward, burying her face in Daryl's naked chest while the hunter moved faster than any of them had ever seen him move, grabbing a blanket that had fallen onto the floor, covering the naked woman that had been grinding against him with it.

There was a second of silence and Daryl turned his face away, his face flushed from more than just embarrassment, when Beth suddenly turned toward Eric and Aaron, her eyes narrowed, a thin layer of sweat on her forehead.

“Take your eyes off my man!” she yelled at them, her glare so strong that it seemed to wake them both from their shock. They hurriedly backed out of the living room and out of the house, calling out apologies for interrupting as they did.

They shut the door and locked it quickly before taking a few steps back, turning to stare at each other.

It took a moment, but then Eric began to smile. “They were together this whole time, weren't they?” he said, sounding very much amused by what had just occurred.

“Yeah,” Aaron said, still not sure that he wasn't dreaming that he had just walked in on Beth and Daryl having sex on the couch in their living room. “I think so,” he nodded curtly.

Eric clapped his hands together and grinned, “I'm so happy for them!”

“I'm not.” Eric looked at Aaron who seemed deep in thoughts.

“Why not?” he asked, clearly confused. It wasn't as if Eric had been the only one rooting for the hunter and the petite songbird to get together.

Aaron clicked his tongue, face serious as he finally opened his mouth to speak. “We're gonna have to burn that couch,” he said.

Eric eyed him for a second before bursting into laughter, wrapping his arms around his neck, pulling him in for a tight hug. “Come on,” he motioned toward the street. “Let's go get some tea or something with Morgan until the lovebirds inside are finished.”

And when they returned later, neither of them mentioned what they had walked in on and Beth and Daryl didn't have to explain anything. Instead they kept on living together as they always did and the only thing that changed, was Beth casually dropping kisses on Daryl's lips or his cheek before they parted ways, and Daryl wrapping his arms around Beth's waist when he thought that Eric and Aaron wasn't around. Still though, he didn't move them away after they entered the room either, so Eric and Aaron took that as a sign that he was comfortable enough around them to show affection to Beth.

When Beth and Daryl returned from a run they had gone on alone, Aaron laughed out loud when he realized that they had brought back a new couch for them. The old one they moved into Beth and Daryl's room, and Aaron pretended not to notice the small smirk that Daryl sent Beth's way, when she grinned at him talking about too fond memories that weren't worth throwing out.

Although, later that night, it occurred to him just what the blonde had meant and he did his best to not think about all the times that Daryl and Beth had had the opportunity to put that couch to good use, when he and Eric hadn't been there.

 

**Author's Note:**

> So? What did ya think? Leave a comment and tell me! :)
> 
> Oh, and please don't forget that since I don't live in the U.S. I won't be able to watch the episode until Monday night, so please, whatever you do, DO NOT write any spoilers in the comments! (Team Delusional for the win though!)
> 
> Thank you so much for reading! Hope you guys have a wonderful day! :) xx


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